The Great Caste System- Rethink or Revoke

While we consider ourselves as the most intelligent creature on this planet, and developed many customs which have helped us to ease our day to day life; always the time would come to reconsider if they still benefit and contribute to the society or the moment has come to vanish them from the roots. One of the oldest among these systems is the division of people in different caste system simply based on their birth. I know I am not talking anything new but will just try to justify this in my way and remind the readers here that this is something that we really need to think about.

Thousands of years ago our ancestors developed a smart system of dividing people of society based on their work of interest and qualities. It helped to run the routine in a smooth way and also as the tasks were defined for them, they could do it more skillfully. I would like to quote a shloka from the Bhagavad Gita which explains this in a crystal clear manner.This is 13th shloka from chapter 4:

चातुर्वर्ण्यंमयासृष्टंगुणकर्मविभागशः।

तस्यकर्तारमपिमांविद्धयकर्तारमव्ययम्‌ ॥

Lord Krishna clarifies to Arjuna that The four-fold order was created by Me according to the divisions of quality and work. Though I am its creator, know Me to be incapable of action or change.

Here people may misinterpret (or understand just the way they want it) that the four fold system is created by God and even he cant change it. Guys, please understand the immediate line stating that it is based on Guna (Aptitude) and Karma (Function) and not based on birth (Jaati/Caste). There are three type of Guna : Sattva, Rajas and Tamas- which are inherent in every individual in different proportion. The usage of word Varna which literally means “color” is also not to indicate the color of your skin but the color of your actions i.e. your Karma.

While this system gives a complete freedom to every individual to decide upon their Varna based on skills and qualities, it has literally taken a U-turn in all these years ultimately hampering the unity in our society as we have taken it forward simply based on the caste/surname carried by the family in which we born. Today, most of the new generation people seem to get out of this mindset due to global exposure they get but we still have a big bunch of people in our country following the same old Jaati and Caste frame. With that, in a way they also like to satisfy their ego if they belong to some so called higher caste. There would also be a group who will support it to get some benefits in government sector jobs or getting admission in some institutes which still follows this system. I understand the government’s point of view to help needy people and support it too, but why that is based on caste an not on your annual income and opportunities in their area? (vote banks of-course and that fact is really redicu..). We still have a generation of parents carrying the taboos about inter-caste marriages which follows high level of stress among parents and their children.

Any societal system comes into place with a good motive to benefit all involved the particular process. But as it is said : Change is inevitable, and we need to again look back and re-examine the mind frames we are following since years. Either understand the system from the roots and implement it in a beneficial way or just abandon it ! But why to stick the same when the time is running ahead at every second????